Holy busy.
Folks, it's summertime on Cape Cod. And I'm going to be honest here: I much prefer fall. And winter. And yeah, okay, spring.
Summer and I aren't exactly tight.
I don't like the heat, the beach, the traffic, or the crowds. Or the heat. Did I mention the heat? I am not a fan. On Facebook, or anywhere else.
But I'll tell you what I am a fan of: fresh, local, organic produce. Oh hell yes. Far as I'm concerned, that's The Reason for the Season, right there.
So I've been trying to get my act together for a few years now and buy a share in the big local CSA in Barnstable, the Cape Cod Organic Farm. I've heard great things about the place, and the people behind it, but it requires a not-insignificant up-front payment, and the shares get snapped up fast. So each year, if I have the money, I'm too late, and if I'm in time, I have no money.
It was looking like the same thing was destined to happen this year, too, until Something Unexpected Happened.
One day, this... girl appeared.
Jess Powers. I used to work with her, back in the olden times before I went back to school and got my MBA and subsequent Big Fancy Job In The City. I always adored Jess, all the way back to when we spent way too much time together in the tiny (and kind of intense) office of the Arts Foundation of Cape Cod, where she would occasionally pass the time by emailing me -- daily -- random photos of Johnny Depp. I seem to recall this one giving me particular and lasting pleasure. She called them my "Daily Doses of Hotness," and this, my friends, was partly my inspiration for what years later would be known as OMG Cravats.
So yeah. Jess Powers, in my mind, equals awesome.
Only thing is, she up and left these parts just before I went back to school, and has kind of been wandering the globe ever since. A little sojourn in Montreal here, a cross-country trip there, and, oh, maybe let's spend a whole year working the land in Hawaii, too. Just to add a little extra flair to the whole experience.
But now... NOW... she's finally come back home to the Cape for what appears to be a more prolonged stay, and she's brought her finely honed organic farming skills with her.
FIST PUMP
Jess is now the proprietress of a killer little farmstand and I -- yes, even I! -- am willing to leave my air conditioned pod of a home and drive through summertime traffic just to visit and give her my custom.
Yeah, that's right, my custom.
So every Saturday, for a few weeks now, I've been toodling down the back roads of Cape Cod between my home in Dennis and her farmstand in Marstons Mills, just to pick up a lovely crate of fresh, organic produce that was grown (in the ground!) by somebody I know and love. Produce that was still in the earth just hours before it reached my kitchen. And then my mouth.
And oh. Yes. Life, my friends, she is so sweet.
Every time I go, she's got something new going on over there -- and not just in terms of produce, which naturally changes with the time. Since I took those pictures last week, she's added a lovely new canopy to the farmstand, which provides an extra sweet dose of shade to cool your brow while you stand and gab the day away. When you're not too busy grabbing as much greenery and fresh eggs as you can possibly lay your hands on. And I hear that there are even more improvements and enhancements to come.
But really, how can you improve on this?
Swear to god, this girl is going to make me like summer in spite of myself.
So anyway, who wants some recipes? Shall I post up some delicious recipes to make you even more jealous than you already are?
Oh, okay. I will.